The day on the Jewish calendar, which is the holiest day of their seven Jewish holy days, holy days that God gave to the Jews to observe on an annual basis, is "Yom Kippur," the "Day of Atonement."

During Biblical times, when the Temple stood in Jerusalem, the High Priest, after much preparation, would enter the Holy of Holies of the Temple for the purpose of pouring the "sacrificial blood" onto the "Mercy Seat" on the "Ark of the Covenant".

This act would cover the sins of the Jewish people for one year until the next Yom Kippur. This annual holy day was to be marked by a twenty-five hour fast and was to be a very solemn day.

Today, without a Temple and the sacrificial system in place, the Jewish people must approach this holy day in a different manner. The ten days between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur are referred to as the ten "Awesome Days".

That's a period of time when the present-day Jews seek forgiveness from family, friends, loved ones and neighbors that they may have trespassed against during the last year.

They will also take a piece of bread to a body of water, that preferably flows into the ocean, and will cast the bread on the water. Then they quote, Micah 7:19, "I will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea."

Many Orthodox Jews will also cut off the head of a chicken and wave its body around over their own heads. They believe all these activities will help them be included in the "Book of Life."

Since there is no Temple and no "sacrificial system" the Jews today offer up prayers three times daily, do good deeds and give money to needy causes. These activities replace the "sacrificial system".

The holy day of Yom Kippur also has a "prophetic significance." Hebrews 9:23-28 reveals that prophetic aspect of Yom Kippur. The text tells us that in days past the High Priest, "entereth into the Holy Place every year with the blood of others".

Now look at what Jesus does, verse 26, "Once in the end of the world hath He appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself." I'll explain that verse in a moment, but first let me remind you that Jesus Christ fulfilled the "spring feast" in the proper day sequences. Jesus Christ was crucified on "Passover", buried on "Unleavened Bread" and rose from the dead on "First Fruits".

Jesus will also fulfill the three "fall feast" in the proper day sequences. Jesus will return to the earth on a future "Rosh Hashana," followed by the ten "awesome days" when He builds up Jerusalem, builds His temple, goes to the Jezreel Valley for the Battle of Armageddon.

Then Jesus will gather the Jews that He will have protected for the last three and a half years of the Tribulation Period, in Petra, and bring them to Jerusalem by way of the Mt of Olives, the Eastern Gate and into the Temple, in fact, into the Holy of Holies, Ezekiel 43:7.

That will happen on the Holy Day, Yom Kippur. That's when all Jews get saved in a day, Zechariah 3:9. Passover was for "personal salvation" and Yom Kippur was for "national salvation." The Jewish feasts have always pointed to Jesus Christ, the Jewish Messiah.

PRAYER THOUGHT: Thank you Lord for Your forgiveness of my sin by the blood that You shed on the cross on Passover.